1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to baggage handling, and more specifically to an inclined baggage slide coupled to an elevated aircraft passenger bridge.
2. Description of Related Art
The use of a baggage slide outside the service door of the passenger loading bridge is to transfer baggage to the cargo loading area from the elevation and area directly adjacent to the passenger entrance to the aircraft.
Owing to a growing trend among air travelers to carry their baggage onboard instead of checking it through at the ticket counter, overhead storage locations on aircraft can become dangerously overburdened. The FAA has guidelines restricting the size and number of pieces of carry-on luggage allowed, which the agency is urging the airlines to enforce. This baggage slide allows flight attendants and ground crews to swiftly and accurately handle overflow baggage without causing aircraft to sustain ground delays.
In addition, in many situations disabled persons are not required to give advance notice to the airlines of their special needs, and frequently arrive for boarding at the passenger loading bridge in wheelchairs. The wheelchairs must be quickly checked as cargo after the disabled person has boarded the aircraft. Hence, there is a need for a baggage slide capable of quickly and efficiently delivering baggage and other cargo, such as wheelchairs, to the cargo loading area. The present invention satisfies this need.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,109,854 to Thompson, Jr. et al. discloses a ramp in an attempt to solve the above described problems. However, this baggage slide has several inherent deficiencies which limit its use due to its structure and method of attachment. Specifically, the Thompson slide has several limitations that limit its ability to accommodate the height the bridge has to be elevated to in turn accommodate the bridge connection to the aircraft access door. Thompson discloses a ramp which has an inclined portion starting at the tarmac at its lower end and terminating at the upper level first stair. The ramp is fixed to the employee auxiliary access stairway at at least two locations, one being at the top of the riser of the first step and the other being at the leading edge area of the stairway upper level platform.
From a safety standpoint, this creates shear loading and stress on the stairway assembly which could cause an accident whereby the ramp and stairway assembly separate from the bridge frame and fall to the ground.
In addition, where the Thompson device is connected to the stairway upper level platform at at least two points, the pivot point for the inclined portion is by necessity located near the top of the first step riser. Should a Boeing 757 or 777 then be parked at the terminal gate, the bridge may have to be elevated. In such a case, the ramp inclination angle changes rapidly and the angle is found to be too steep. That is the formed hypotenuse of the inclined portion of the ramp is relatively short in comparison to the present invention and any elevation change quickly affects the steepness of the incline.
The present invention overcomes this deficiency because, as described in more detail below, the attachment is independent of the stairway assembly and the ramp instead attaches directly to the framework of the bridge assembly. No additional load is applied to the stairway as a result of the ramp weight itself or in combination with the weight of objects sliding down the ramp. Further, the attachment point which is also the pivotal point is near an underneath surface of the stairway landing platform but at its leading edge closest to the aircraft, thereby resulting in a longer inclined portion or formed hypotenuse. Now when the bridge needs to the elevated, the longer inclined ramp can be elevated without dramatically changing the slope of the incline.
In addition, because the present invention is a continuously inclining ramp, as opposed to the flat upper level fixed platform of the Thompson reference, the first upper level segment of the present invention ramp continues its incline. This provides a further ergonomic benefit to baggage handlers as the upper end of the incline is at a higher elevation such that a baggage handler need not bend down as far to place an article onto the ramp. The upper end of the incline is in effect closer to a height between the waist and knees of a typical handler.
The present invention is a baggage slide for a movable elevated passenger walkway/bridge having attached to said movable elevated passenger walkway/bridge an auxiliary access stairway extending downwardly on an incline from the movable elevated passenger walkway/bridge to the tarmac. The auxiliary access stairway has an upper portion landing platform for facilitating access for airline service employees to and from the elevated passenger walkway/bridge from and to the tarmac.
More specifically, the inventive baggage slide comprises a baggage slide support member attached to a movable elevated passenger walkway/bridge and extends from said elevated passenger walkway/bridge near a leading edge and near an underneath side of an auxiliary access stairway""s upper portion landing platform. The baggage slide support member further laterally extends beyond the auxiliary access stairway""s upper portion landing platform a sufficient length to pivotally couple a loading end of an inclined modular ramp assembly.
The inclined modular ramp assembly includes an unloading end for resting on a tarmac surface with a generally planar conveyance surface extending between the unloading end and the loading end for the sliding conveyance of an article from the loading end to the unloading end. The inclined modular ramp assembly is disposed near and generally parallel to the auxiliary access stairway.
The inclined modular ramp assembly further includes upstanding wall members generally along each edge of the generally planar conveyance surface. The upstanding wall members are means for preventing the sliding article from falling off the generally planar conveyance surface.
The loading end of the inclined modular ramp assembly preferably has side access means for loading the article from the auxiliary access stairway""s upper portion landing platform onto the inclined modular ramp assembly, while the unloading end of the inclined modular ramp assembly has side access means for removing the article from the inclined modular ramp assembly.
In a typical application of the invention, the unloading end of the inclined modular ramp assembly further comprises an article stop extending substantially across the inclined modular ramp assembly with the article stop further being located downstream of the side access means for removing the article from the inclined modular ramp assembly. The article stop is adapted to absorb the impact shock of the sliding article. For example, the article stop typically may be a rubber reinforced gate.
The inclined modular ramp assembly typically comprises a loading segment, an unloading segment and at least one intermediate segment there between.
The generally planar conveyance surface comprises a longitudinally oriented channel corrugated surface defining rain water runoff paths between upper surfaces of the channel corrugated surface.
The side access means for loading the article from the auxiliary access stairway""s upper portion landing platform onto the inclined modular ramp assembly includes a first segment for funneling the article to said loading end. The first segment has a width gregreater than a corresponding width of the unloading end.
In an additional embodiment of the invention, the inclined modular ramp assembly further includes a shell for covering at least a portion of the inclined modular ramp assembly.
In another embodiment of the invention, the inclined modular ramp assembly comprises one or more segments of predetermined length each, wherein each segment is adjustable in length so as to maintain a substantially constant ratio between a height of the loading end from the tarmac surface and a length of the inclined modular ramp assembly.
Of course, the inclined modular ramp assembly may comprise a loading segment, an unloading segment and a plurality of intermediate segments there between, where the plurality of intermediate segments have at least two different lengths.
For facilitating relative movement along the tarmac as the bridge is elevated somewhat to adjust to specific aircraft configurations, the unloading end preferably has ground engagement wheels coupled to the inclined modular ramp assembly at said unloading end.
For items that need to be lowered carefully or for items htat need to be elevated from the tarmac to the aircraft, winch means located at the loading end for the controllable lowering of the article down the inclined modular ramp assembly and for the transfer of the article up the inclined modular ramp assembly, may be incorporated.
For weather protection, the inclined modular ramp assembly may include a shell for covering a substantial portion of the inclined modular ramp assembly.
The longitudinally oriented channel corrugated surface also provides for a reduced friction thereby enhancing the sliding of the article down the inclined modular ramp by causing only the upper surface of the longitudinally oriented channel corrugated surface to be in direct contact with the article as the article slides down the inclined modular ramp.
The loading segment typically comprises a platform portion and a connecting portion for connecting the platform portion to the at least one intermediate segment, wherein the platform portion and the connecting portion form an obtuse angle. Similarly, in the embodiment with the plurality of intermediate segments, the loading segment comprises a platform portion and a connecting portion for connecting the platform portion to the plurality of intermediate segments, wherein the platform portion and the connecting portion form an obtuse angle.
Related objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description.